1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technology for processing image data obtained by reading an image of an original with an image reading unit.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, with the development of reading units that use a line sensor formed of a charge-coupled device (CCD) photoelectric conversion element and of toner-writing units that use laser emission, digital copying machines that make copies using digital image data have appeared on the market from analog copying machines. The digital copying machine becomes highly compatible with other devices that handle digital image data, and not only includes a function as a copier but also includes various functions such as a facsimile function, a printer function, and a scanner function, so that it is now called a digital multifunction product (MFP).
Technologies related to the MFP have advanced to provide a memory such as a hard disk drive (HDD) having a higher capacity, cost reduction, faster network communication technology, a central processing unit (CPU) with improved throughput, and technique (e.g., data compression technique) related to digital image data. The advancement in MFP technologies leads to a wide variety of functions incorporated in the MFP. Besides, the use of the MFP is also diversified. For example, a compact MFP is placed next to a personal computer (PC) as paired use, so that an operator can easily use the functions of a copier, a facsimile, a printer, and a scanner. A medium-size MFP is shared by a plurality of members in each department unit or section unit, and productivity to a certain extent and functions such as sorting, punching, and stapling can be used. Furthermore, a large-size MFP is used in a department of a company that concentratedly performs copying related tasks, or in companies that perform copying related business as main business, and therefore, high-productivity and high-quality multifunctional products are used therein.
In this manner, the MFPs are diversified from the compact class to the large-size class, however, there are some functions that can be shared over the classes, and there are some functions that are strongly requested by and specific to the respective classes. For example, the large-size MFP is requested to perform finishing works on plotted paper such as punching, stapling, and paper folding, and to make the data in the form of electronic filing simultaneously when the data is copied. The compact MFP is requested to enhance an internet facsimile (FAX) function and a PC-FAX function or the like, or is requested to achieve high-quality image printing for specific paper for personal use.
As explained above, a system in which functions required for the classes are set is constructed and provided so far to the MFP market being diversified. The importance of the value of information in business is already recognized, and thus, information is requested to be not only quickly, accurately, and surely transferred but also understandably and effectively transferred. Moreover, in association with speed up and widespread use of communication technology, higher capacity of the memory, cost reduction, minimization, or high performance of PC, new functions efficiently handling information using digital data are provided. The new functions are provided one after another especially to the MFP that handles digital image data as a part of digital data, or integration of the functions is achieved therein.
For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2000-165655 proposes an image processing apparatus capable of performing synthesis in various forms by coping with magnification in a wider scaling factor and of relaxing limit of a readable image area due to a storage capacity of a memory.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. H07-78245 proposes an image processing apparatus capable of implementing an image output process at high speed with less image degradation even if the image processing apparatus does not include a full-size page memory.
However, the MFP in which the functions are diversified in the above manner, particularly, the compact MFP is placed next to a PC as paired use, so that the operator can easily use the functions of a copier, a facsimile, a printer, and a scanner. Therefore, the compact MFP is widely used not only by users in small offices such as small office/home office (SOHO) but also by home users and users in medium/large offices. Therefore, functions required by the users are diversified, and new functions continuously provided to meet the requirements become complicated. Consequently, it is quite difficult to balance between achievement of a function containing all the new functions and cost reduction which is the most significant feature of the compact MFP.
For example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2000-165655, a method of relaxing the limit to a readable image size due to the capacity of the memory is implemented by switching methods of scaling processes according to usable memory capacity and whether there is a rotation process using the memory, to perform an image processing. However, this method does not relax the limit to the image processing corresponding to types of the image processing, and thus, it is not the best solution suitable for situations.
Further, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. H07-78245, the image processing is performed by setting ways of using a page memory and an image registration memory and automatically switching between the ways according to the capacity of image data to be processed even if the full-size page memory is not incorporated in the image processing apparatus. However, this case also does not solve an image processing related problem corresponding to the type of the image processing, and thus, it is not the best solution suitable for situations.